Smart Urinary Catheter with Electrolytic Flow Sensor
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Solution Overview
Problem
Spinal cord injuries often lead to loss of bladder control, increasing the risk of urinary tract infections and incontinence, as patients may not comply with using urinary catheters due to inconvenience, embarrassment, or forgetfulness, and existing catheters lack effective tracking mechanisms.
Innovation Solution
A 'smart' urinary catheter with a low-cost sensor powered by urine flow, which includes a unique identifier and a signaling device that interacts with a smartphone to track usage, ensuring patient compliance and providing data on usage history to medical professionals.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a urinary catheter is equipped with tracking sensors and signaling devices, then patient compliance can be monitored, but the cost and complexity of the catheter increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces complex mechanical tracking systems with a chemical sensing mechanism. The sensor detects chemical changes in urine (pH, conductivity) to determine catheter usage, eliminating the need for mechanical switches, buttons, or complex electronic components. This substitution maintains compliance monitoring capability while significantly reducing device complexity and cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The catheter system performs self-monitoring through automatic detection of usage events. The sensor continuously monitors urine parameters and automatically generates compliance data without requiring patient interaction or complex external tracking devices. The system serves itself by using the urine itself as the sensing medium, eliminating the need for separate power sources or complex electronics.
2Loss of information
If a urinary catheter includes multiple sensors for monitoring volume, flow rate, bacteria, and hydration, then comprehensive health data can be collected, but the cost and complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a universal sensing approach where a single sensor system measures multiple urine parameters (pH, conductivity, flow rate) using the same basic sensor platform. This multi-functional sensor design allows comprehensive monitoring of hydration, infection risk, and catheter usage without requiring separate specialized sensors for each parameter, thereby reducing overall system complexity while maintaining comprehensive data collection.
3Loss of information
If a unique identifier and signaling device are added to each catheter, then usage tracking and compliance monitoring are enabled, but the manufacturing cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a disposable catheter design where the sensor and unique identifier are integrated into a single-use catheter. This approach allows the use of simple, low-cost sensing components that would be too expensive to reuse. The disposable nature eliminates the need for complex durability features, battery systems, or reusable housing, significantly reducing manufacturing costs while enabling comprehensive tracking functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent uses the urine itself as a copy or medium to carry information about catheter usage. By measuring chemical parameters of the urine, the system infers usage data without requiring complex electronic identifiers or communication systems. This information copying approach through chemical analysis reduces the need for expensive electronic tracking components.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
The smart catheter ensures patient compliance by tracking catheter use, reducing urinary tract infections and incontinence risks through timely intervention, and potentially monitoring additional parameters like volume drained, flow rate, bacterial presence, and hydration levels.
Implementation Method 1
The indicators incorporate an electrolytic cell energized by urine flow that powers an electric signaling device
Data Source
Figure 1~2
Figure 3A~3C
Figure 4
AI summary
A urinary catheter (20) having a sensor or indicator (22) affixed therein in a location that will be in the flow of urine when catheter is in use. The indicator comprises an electrolytic wicking material (41) having an anode (42) and a cathode (44) thereon separated across a gap (G). The wicking material may be paper. The indicator further includes an output transducer (48) positioned and connected relative to the anode and cathode such that a circuit which energizes the output transducer is created when urine flows. The indicator is configured to generate an output signal received at a remote location so that a medical practitioner can monitor proper usage of the catheter.